This invention is directed to covers or lids, especially those formed from sheets of plastic material and adapted for snap-on closure for drinking containers and the like. Normally such containers include an upper terminal curled wall portion or bead adapted for receipt in a similarly configured channel provided in the cover. Such cover construction normally includes a peripheral terminal skirt which may include a plurality of circumferentially spaced inwardly directed detents such as those designated by the reference numeral 14 in U.S. Pat. No. 3,193,130 issued July 6, 1965. Similar detents are described in U.S. Pat. No. Re. 28,797 reissued May 4, 1976 and designated by reference numeral 23 therein. In both the above-indicated constructions, the upper inner surface portions of the detents are adapted to engage outer peripheral portions of the container bead and are generally configured so as to be of decreasing circumferential dimension in the upward direction. The above patent citations and the discussion thereof constitutes applicant`s Prior Art Disclosure and in that regard, a copy of each such patent is enclosed with this application.
Although the constructions set forth in such above-identified patents are functional and in fact represent commercially acceptable products, it would be desirable to provide a cover construction which more easily will expand, deflect or otherwise accommodate slight variances in the bead dimensions of the container under consideration. It is accordingly a primary object of the present invention to provide a cover construction of the type hereunder consideration which will simultaneously more readily circumferentially expand and radially outwardly flex to accommodate such minor manufacturing dimensional changes that may occur in the beads of such containers.
This and other objects of the present invention are accomplished by a provision of a cover construction in which alternating inwardly directed detents and outwardly directed flutes are formed in a downwardly extending peripheral skirt portion. The deepest part of each detent is located at the base thereof and the detents are so oriented that they are of generally equal width, i.e. circumferential dimension along their vertical extent. Similarly, the flutes are of generally equal width and merge with the skirt adjacent lower portions of the channel in a relatively short, straight, horizontally extending portion. Such horizontally extending portions cooperatively form an interrupted peripheral base line about which the skirt may upwardly flex when the container bead is positioned within the channel. Thus by dimensioning alternating flutes and detents in a manner significantly different from that which is shown as conventional in the above-referred to patents, applicants have devised a novel container cover construction which operates in an improved manner.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention shall become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.